Creative Mixer

This month's Salida "Creative Mixer" is Thursday, May 12 at 5:30 pm in the SteamPlant Paquette Gallery at 220 West Sackett Avenue in Salida's Downtown Creative District. Sponsored by Salida Council for the Arts, this popular networking event is a way for local artists, writers, musicians, art lovers and community members to meet and socialize on a casual basis.The featured artist in the Gallery is Roberta Smith; special musical guest is local duo nth Degree.

As always, the event is free and open to the public.

Free hors d'oeuvres and a cash bar will be available; as will the always-popular "soapbox", where anyone can stand up and make announcements of interest to the crowd.

About the Guest Musicians:nth Degree is a musical duo with Deb Needell on woodwinds and bass, and Bill Needell on guitar. Both Deb and Bill sing original singer-songwriter compositions about love, nature and philosophy of life as well as unique acoustic arrangements of standard rock, country and popular songs.

From Roberta Smith's show My Dogged Dreams.

Roberta Smith - My Dogged Dreams - now through the month of May.

After years of making adult decisions regarding my artwork, I decided to take heed of my inner child who kept insisting, “Can’t we just have some fun now?” So I turned the steering wheel of our creativity bus over to her while I tried to recover from my years of study at a prestigious New York art school. And fun and silliness abounded. Some very odd aliens invaded my imagination sparked by the freshness and absence of pretense I observed in the drawings of young children.

Then I got Phoebe, an adorable labradoodle puppy, and I truly felt like a child again.

With Phoebe and her many canine friends I have embarked on a fascinating journey into a world previously unknown to me. Observing their antics both while awake and asleep sparked my fancy. I can’t help but speculate on what they are thinking or dreaming.

o I have created some imaginary pups’ dreams complete with accessories evocative of their personalities and of course I have provided them with things to chase, to play with, to sniff and to chew. Some even have alien companions. w I know this to be true—It’s never too late to have a happy childhood!